After being infected twice, Su Bingtian was forced to withdraw from the competition. How lethal is the new coronavirus to professional athletes?

Regret! Su Bingtian announced that he would not participate in the World Championships and Asian Games trials. Su Bingtian said that he felt unwell after recovering from two COVID-19 infections, and the team's technical experts also found that he could not raise his muscle strength when exerting force. What impact does the COVID-19 have on athletes' physical functions?

Compiled by New Media Editor Lü Bingxin On the 12th, Chinese sprinter Su Bingtian announced that he would end the 2023 season early due to health reasons and would no longer participate in the trials for the World Track and Field Championships and the Asian Games. Su Bingtian revealed that he had symptoms of discomfort after recovering from two COVID-19 infections , and his team's technical experts also found that when Su Bingtian exerted force, his muscle strength could not be raised.

In fact, many athletes in the world of sports are suffering from the aftereffects of the coronavirus. Messi also said that he couldn't even run for a month and a half after the coronavirus. How much impact does the coronavirus have on athletes?

1

Su Bingtian announced that he would not participate in the World Championships and Asian Games trials

On June 12, Su Bingtian posted on social media that he was sorry to announce to everyone here: Due to physical reasons, I have decided not to participate in the upcoming World Championships and Asian Games track and field trials, and to end the 2023 season early.

Su Bingtian said that as a 34-year-old sprinter, the injuries accumulated over the years and the changes in physical functions after the epidemic have brought varying degrees of difficulties to this year's preparations. Since his body had adverse reactions during training, the team conducted a series of examinations and tests for him, and actively consulted and sought help from all parties. In the end, after expert advice and consultation with the team, in order to better prolong his competitive sports career, he had to give up this year's competition and take a period of rest and adjustment.

"At the same time, I will not stop pursuing my dreams! I will use this time to actively recover and go all out to prepare for the 2024 Paris Olympics. I would like to thank the General Administration of Sport of China, the Chinese Athletics Association, the Guangdong Sports Bureau and Jinan University for their great help and understanding. Thank you all for your attention and support. I look forward to seeing you next season!" said Su Bingtian.

▲Screenshot of Su Bingtian’s Weibo post

2

Symptoms of discomfort occurred after recovering from two previous COVID-19 infections

Zhong Nanshan was invited to inspect

After Su Bingtian announced that he would withdraw from the subsequent competitions in the 2023 season due to injury, he accepted an interview and specifically talked about his physical problems. Su Bingtian said that before participating in the Gothenburg Indoor Track and Field Championships in Sweden earlier this year, he had already felt unwell. "In the end, my winning time was 6.59 seconds, which is not particularly good, but considering the recent training and physical condition, it is still a decent result."

On the other hand, the physical problems that occurred in the Swedish competition also became an obstacle for Su Bingtian to continue to compete. Su Bingtian said that after the Swedish competition, the team moved to Padova, Italy. But Su Bingtian's physical discomfort became more and more serious. "I started to have some problems with my body. I don't know the specific problems, but it has a great impact on my body." Su Bingtian said.

Technical experts from Su Bingtian's team also found that when Su Bingtian exerted force, his muscle strength could not be raised. Affected by this, Su Bingtian's team finally cancelled the plan to participate in the indoor competition and returned to China for adjustments. It is reported that after returning to China, Su Bingtian's team invited Academician Zhong Nanshan to examine Su Bingtian. " Academician Zhong Nanshan screened my indicators. There was no problem, it was more normal than normal people. But the uncomfortable feeling during training still exists. " Su Bingtian said.

It is reported that Su Bingtian had been infected with the new coronavirus twice before, and these symptoms appeared after recovery. Although the symptoms affected Su Bingtian's competition plan, the Chinese sprinter still insisted on training.

3

Many athletes understand Su Bingtian's experience

Messi, who was killing it in the World Cup, was also troubled by the sequelae of the new crown. Messi said he experienced the typical symptoms of the new crown, sore throat, cough and fever. When these initial effects disappeared, he began to continue to struggle with breathing problems. Although he turned negative quickly, Messi revealed, "It left me with sequelae. It left sequelae in my lungs. I came back, but because my lungs were affected, I couldn't even run for a month and a half."

In fact, over the past period of time, many studies have concluded through data statistics and analysis that infection with the new coronavirus will have different degrees of impact on an individual's motor function.

For ordinary people, the symptoms related to "new crown sequelae" are very extensive. "New crown sequelae", commonly known as "long new crown". It is worth noting that "new crown sequelae" is actually very different from the "sequelae" understood by many ordinary people - irreversible, causing huge physical and mental trauma. But for the convenience of everyone's understanding, it is still called "new crown sequelae". People may experience: fatigue; shortness of breath or difficulty breathing; problems with memory, attention or sleep; persistent cough; chest pain; difficulty speaking; muscle pain; loss of smell or taste; depression or anxiety; fever and other symptoms. These symptoms can last for weeks or even months, and may recur, affecting the patient's life and work to varying degrees.

As for the impact on athletes, Paul Carson, a professor at North Dakota State University in the United States, said that there are "sequelae " of being infected with the new coronavirus, especially for professional athletes who have extremely high demands on athletic performance.

A study published in "Sports Science Research" pointed out that athletes infected with the new coronavirus will suffer varying degrees of organ and tissue damage and morphological changes, which may lead to short-term or long-term decline in athletic ability, mainly manifested as: decreased aerobic exercise capacity and muscle strength, emotional disorders, fatigue, sleep disorders and other psychological problems, and changes in eating habits may lead to malnutrition in athletes.

In a scientific article published in October 2022 in the authoritative academic journal of sports science "Journal of Sports Sciences" titled "The Impact of COVID-19 Infection on the Athletic Level of Amateur Athletes One Month and Three Months After" sports researchers from the Netherlands studied 4,360 amateur athletes in the Netherlands and found that one month after being infected with COVID-19 (asymptomatic/mild), the total exercise level (volume of exercise) of amateur athletes/enthusiasts would be forced to drop by 58%. 36% of amateur athletes and enthusiasts found that they were still unable to return to their previous exercise level three months after recovering from COVID-19. Fatigue, exertion and difficulty breathing during exercise were the main reasons.

Studies have also found that nearly one-third of high-level athletes have not returned to full sports training 28 days after recovering from mild COVID-19.

A paper in the British Medical Journal studied the occurrence of exertional symptoms in college athletes after being infected with COVID-19. The study found that among 3,597 athletes (average age 20±1 years, 34% female), 3,529 and 3,393 athletes had persistent and exertional symptoms, respectively. Among the 3,529 athletes, 44 (1.2%) had persistent symptoms for more than 3 weeks, and 2 (0.06%) had persistent symptoms for more than 12 weeks.

German sports rehabilitation expert Frobeser gave a detailed explanation of the impact of COVID-19 infection on athletes. In his opinion, athletes' reactions to infection vary from person to person, but severe patients are likely to be affected for a long time. "If the virus attacks key organs such as the lungs and heart, it may cause athletes to be unable to train for a long time, or even end their careers early. In addition, if athletes resume high-intensity training too early after infection, it may also cause more extensive damage. They will experience frequent fatigue, and even their bones will not adapt to the intensity of training and competition. This effect may last for a year."

To this day, the specific impact of the new coronavirus on sports still needs the support of long-term research results. Improving one’s own immunity and avoiding infection seem to be the only way to avoid the possible impact of the new coronavirus on sports. Other methods are just blindly opening boxes for the sequelae of the new coronavirus.

(Beijing Science and Technology Daily compiled from The Paper, Science Popularization China, Orange and Persimmon Interactive, Running Hall, etc.)